Linoleum has long been known as a resilient floor covering based on renewable raw materials. Because of its natural constituents, linoleum has achieved great structural-biological and environmental importance. The production of linoleum coverings, however, requires in the last stage of the process a heat treatment that lasts several weeks, the "ripening time. "
Coating masses that are based on renewable raw materials and serve for the coating of planar structures or of release paper are known from DE-A-41 35 664. The coating masses consist of a combination of epoxidation products of esters of unsaturated fatty acids and partial esters of polycarboxylic acids with polyether polyols as well as a hydrophobing agent. These coating masses are used for the production of floor coverings. It is disadvantageous, however, that the top layer of coverings produced in this way is very rough and non-transparent. Further, the back coatings require a complicated production with more costly separating paper or release paper, has no foam, and thus offer no walking comfort. Furthermore, it turns out that the surface of these coverings is not sufficiently dirt-repellent and exhibits poor complete curing.
Spreadable coating masses for the production of planar structures based on renewable raw materials are known from WO 96/15203. The production of these planar structures, however, is restricted to spreading or coating processes because of the use of so called "coating pastes" that contain the coating masses.